The augmented reality future we were long ago promised has been slow
to come around, perhaps restrained most by the basic biology of our own
eyes, which are unable to properly see detailed images placed very near
the pupils. But via technology developed in part with a certain government agency, Washington-based Innovega has created a unique contact lens technology that allows the eye to focus on images projected very close to the eyes as well as objects in the real world beyond.

Simply put, the technology opens the door to augmented reality
systems that don’t require some kind of bulky,
virtual-reality-headset-from-the-‘90s peripheral visor or helmet.
Instead, Innovega’s tech relies on images protected on a normal-looking
set of specs and a pair of nanotechnology-infused contact lenses that
provide megapixel clarity of that up-close imagery while still allowing
the eye to focus on the world beyond.

At least, so goes the company’s CES pitch, which you can judge for
yourself below. We haven’t tested the product, so we can’t really speak
to its awesomeness. But DARPA can. The Pentagon’s blue-sky research wing announced yesterday that
Innovega has developed for the agency a new breed of contact lenses that
allow “a wearer to view virtual and augmented reality images without
the need for bulky apparatus” and that allow users to focus on both
faraway objects and images placed very close to the eye.